


Uncharted

by Songbird321



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: And Are Bad At It, Awkward Flirting, Cuddling, Everyone Already Thinks They're Dating, Fluff, M/M, Really Cheesy Compliments and Pet Names, So They Date, but in the best way
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-07
Updated: 2017-01-07
Packaged: 2018-09-15 11:11:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 18,597
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9232295
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Songbird321/pseuds/Songbird321
Summary: Everyone thinks they’re dating. But they aren’t. They’re just best friends. So it comes as quite a shock to Kei and Tadashi when they begin to hear whispers that they’re dating. The wheels begin to turn for both of them, and all it takes is a simple conversation to turn best friendship into something more. But is this new territory for them? Do they have to actually flirt now? Unconditional love came so easily before, but does dating mean they actually have to label their hang outs ‘dates’ and give each other ridiculous nicknames and things like that?Written for the 2016 Tsukkiyama Gift Exchange.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! This here is my gift for @the-nothing-maker on tumblr for the 2016 Tsukkiyama gift exchange. The prompt was for either an awkward-flirting trope or a time-lapse showing the progression of their relationship over time. So, what happened here was meant to be a bit of both, but leaning more towards awkward-flirting. And what really happened here was another case of me not knowing how to write small. I had a lot of ideas for this, and instead of chopping them I just ran with them all. As a result, there may be some awkward bumps and transitions in this, and I apologize in advance for them, as well as for the ridiculous length. I really didn't intend for it to be this long, but here we are. I would also like to quickly throw in a potential apology for any mischaracterizations, as this is my first legitimate fanfic for Haikyuu, and I'm still trying to get the hang of these characters. 
> 
> Final Note: This fic was actually partial inspired by Celine Dion's _Right In Front of You._ as well as Sara Barellis' _Uncharted,_ (thus the title.)
> 
> So, to my dear recipient, I sincerely hope that you enjoy this. To all my other dear readers, I hope you enjoy as well.

“One more, Yamaguchi!”

Tsukishima narrowed his eyes, zeroing in on the brunette across the court, preparing to serve. He watched as Yamaguchi took a deep breath, centering himself before the shot. He watched as the brunette’s body tensed in preparation, lunging back before running forward, launching the ball in the air. Yamaguchi jumped, eyes focused on the ball and the ball alone as his arm wound up and hit the ball with forceful precision, propelling it across the court. Kei continued to watch as the brunette landed, his feet gracefully hitting the gym floor before he stood at the ready to receive in case his serve didn’t finish the job. 

Tsukishima didn’t even care that the serve did in fact fly right past Ennoshita behind him, scoring a point for the opposing team. Tadashi’s serve had quickly come to be one of Kei’s favorite things to watch. It was rare that the brunette looked so confident. And he’d rather watch that than win a scrimmage match any day. 

“Nice serve!” Tanaka yelled. Tadashi smiled. Kei nodded imperceptibly as someone threw the ball back over the net so the brunette could serve again. This would be his fourth serve of the evening. And as much as he admired Tadashi’s ever-growing skill and grace, Kei didn’t think his team would be able to stomach losing another point. He could practically see smoke escaping from Hinata’s ears next to him.

“Last serve,” Ukai called from the sidelines, eyeing his watch. Practice was nearly over. All the more reason to make this volley count. 

Tsukishima focused on Yamaguchi one last time as the brunette prepped, jumped, and served. The blonde could tell immediately that Daichi could receive this one, and didn’t even turn around as he heard that very thing happen, the captain calling for Kageyama to be ready to set. Tsukishima kept his eyes focused on team on the opposite side of the net as Hinata, Nartia, and Ennoshita ran forward. Kageyama tossed the ball to Narita, who spiked it over the net.

Where it was quickly received by Nisinoya, who called for Suga. Tsukishima narrowed his eyes at the ashy-haired setter, trying to read his set before it happened. Normally, when under this kind of pressure, he’d toss to Asahi. But, this wasn’t normally. This was a scrimmage match and winning didn’t matter. Practicing did. Which meant Kinoshita was an option, but the other boy wasn’t running towards the net, so…

“Right!” Tsukishima called to Kageyama and Narita who quickly ran to join him. “And… up!” The block appeared right as the ball reached Tanaka’s fingers, slamming right into the wall they’d formed and falling to the floor with an echoing smack.

“Tsukishima,” Tanaka muttered under his breath, glaring at the taller boy through the net, as Hinata cheered the same name gleefully from his own side. Kei simply smirked. 

“That was a guess,” he said so only Tanaka could hear as the team assembled to hear notes from their coach. Tsukishima ignored the second years grumblings, as Yamaguchi had appeared at his side, smiling up at him as they moved to sit down. Tsukishima haredly noticed how Yamaguchi always ended up right next to him, but he took it as a given that the brunette would always be right by his side. Even present, smiling or snickering at his comments or looking forward with a focused look on his face as he did now, listening intently to what Ukai and Takeda had to say. But always right by Tsukishima’s side. 

It was silently understood between the two of them that Tadashi would always be by Kei’s side, and vice versa. It had been that way since the first day Kei had saved Tadashi from his bullies in middle school, (Tadashi said saved, Kei would usually just shrug and say he’d simply put a few guys in their place.) And neither saw a reason to change it now. They had grown from unfamiliar classmates to unlikely friends to inseparable best friends. 

It was easy enough for anyone who took one look at them to understand that. 

~

But one thing Kei would never understand about Tadashi was his ability to put up with Hinata. Kageyama too, but Kei found that it was easier to coexist with Kageyama than Hinata. Especially when the red head was talking a mile a minute at a pitch too high for any normal person to stomach for more than two minutes at a time. Which he happened to be doing right now as the team was preparing to go home. 

“Yamaguchi, I’m going outside,” Kei said over the sound of Hinata’s voice, making it clear that his intention was to block the red head out. Tsukishima had made sure to change as quickly as possible, already tired of Hinata’s earsplittingly loud voice, as he wasn’t in the mood to even try to tolerate it tonight. It was a Tuesday, arguably the worst day of the week, he had a test on Thursday, and he figured that was a good enough reason to not want to put up with any of his teammates really. 

“Okay Tsukki!” Tadashi, who had taken a considerably longer time changing, smiled after him as he pulled his t-shirt over his head. Tsukishima nodded and dipped out the door. 

“Why’s he always so mean?” Hinata huffed, glaring daggers at the doorway. “I was just getting to the good part too…”

“He’s not mean, he’s just… blunt,” Yamaguchi replied, slipping a sweatshirt on over his head. “Don’t take him too seriously.”

“Of course you’d defend him,” Hinata grumbled. 

The brunette paused with the sweatshirt half over his head, his eyes just peering out from within the fabric. “Hm?”

Hinata blinked, cocking his head to the side. “Well you two are dating, aren’t you?”

Tadashi blinked, his jaw dropping open in shock. “What? No!” He hurriedly pulled the sweatshirt on all the way, only fumbling and getting lost in the fabric twice before his head emerged, cheeks pink and eyes wide. “Me and Kei, er, Kei and I? Pfff! No, we’re not dating.”

Hinata’s gaze narrowed. “Are you sure?”

“Of course I’m sure. Don’t you think I’d know if I was dating someone?” Yamaguchi laughed nervously. His heart was hammering against his ribcage, as if he were on trial and guilty for the crime. Why was his heart beating so fast? 

“But you do all of the things couples do,” Hinata said as if it were obvious. Yamaguchi, who saw nothing obvious about this accusation, cocked his head to the side, prompting the red head to go on. “You have a bunch of inside jokes. You text each other all the time. He’s always in your Snapchats and Instagram posts. You sit next to each other on the bus and share music. He lets you sleep on his shoulder sometimes too! And you share your lunches. And you spend a lot of time together…”

“Are we talking about Yamaguchi and Tsukishima?” Nishinoya asked, appearing out of thin air, his head popping up behind Hinata’s shoulder. Yamaguchi jumped, taking a step backwards. “Because if we are, I’d like to contribute to the list.”

“L-list?” Yamaguchi stuttered in anxious confusion. 

Noya nodded, a smug grin slowly taking over his face. “Oh yeah. We have a list on the two of you. Do you really think you can hide a relationship from the team?”

“Yeah, we’d expect that from Tsukishima, but you?” Tanaka added, materializing by Yamaguchi’s side and casually wrapping his arm around his shoulders, trapping him in the middle of this interrogation circle. The brunette flinched, but couldn’t move away, Tanaka’s grip too tight. “You would never be so cruel to your teammates, would you?”

“What? No, I… There’s no relationship to hide!” Yamaguchi exclaimed defensively, his voice getting higher. Why was his voice getting higher? And why was his heart beating so darn fast? 

“Then how come you two always walk to and from school together?” Tanaka challenged. 

“Because we’re best friends and have walked to school together since middle school…” Yamaguchi answered honestly. 

“And how come you’re always the first to defend or compliment him at practice?” Noya added. 

“Because he’s my best friend…” Yamaguchi felt like he was pleading at this point. 

“And why are you the only one allowed to call him by his first name?” Ennoshita pointed out from his left. Yamaguchi stared at the older boy with a look of betrayal on his face. Chikara had the better sense to not look the brunette in the eye, silently packing up his bag as he continued. “Or any sort of nickname for that matter. I’m pretty sure he’d murder any of us if we tried to call him Tsukki.” 

Tadashi paused, thinking. Maybe he and Kei _did_ sort of act like a couple. But none of it ever seemed romantic when it came to Kei. Hanging out on weekends, joking around, sharing food, sitting together… all of that was just stuff best friends did. Wasn’t it? 

“Well, I call him those things because we’ve been best friends for years,” he said, shaking his head slowly. “And I don’t know what you’re all talking about. Tsukki and I may do all that stuff, but it’s because we’re friends. Just friends, yeah? We’re not… together together.” His shoulders started caving forward, as if his body were trying to escape the interrogation by collapsing in on itself. “And you know I’d tell you if we were. But we’re not so…”

“Hey.” Ennoshita moved forward, prying Tanaka’s arm off the younger boy. “Don’t worry, we were just teasing. It’s been a long time since we had a new couple around here…”

“And to be fair, we’ve had a list on everyone else too,” Tanaka added with a beaming grin. “And Daichi and Suga’s was much longer than yours. And Hinata and Kageyama’s is currently longer than yours…”

“What?” Kageyama exclaimed, dropping the shoe he was in the middle of putting on as Hinata made a sound somewhere between a squawk and a scream. 

Noya nodded as if it were common knowledge. “Yeah, you’re list is already like two and a half pages long…”

“Three actually,” Suga called from the back of the club room. Kageyama’s face turned red as a cherry while Hinata started sputtering off denials. Yamaguchi smiled, grateful to be out of the spotlight as his heart continued racing. He put a hand against his chest, trying to calm the beating. 

“See? No one likes being accused of being in a relationship,” Ennoshita pointed out, turning a gentle, apologetic smile in Yamaguchi’s direction as the rest of the team focused on Kageyama and Hinata’s growing argument as to why they’d never date each other _ever_. “But for what it’s worth, I think you and Tsukishima would make a great couple. You two _do_ act a lot like one already. And it’s hard to miss the way you look at each other.” The brunette nodded, feeling his face turn red. 

“Okay,” he said in response, hoisting his bag over his shoulder. “I should probably go. Tsukki’s waiting and…”

“We’ll see you tomorrow,” Ennoshita replied with another smile. Yamaguchi nodded before slipping out the door. Kei was already down on the ground, playing with his phone. Tadashi released a breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding, relieved that Kei hadn’t overheard the team’s conversation. Not that there would’ve been anything wrong with him hearing but… it wasn’t a topic Tadashi was prepared to talk about with him. 

“Hey Tsukki,” he greeted as he stepped down the stairs onto the path. “Ready to go?”

Kei slipped his phone into his pocket. “What took you so long?”

Tadashi shrugged, offering him a sideways smile. “Team drama. You know you can’t get them to stop talking once they start.”

Kei hummed in agreement before he turned towards the road and started walking. Tadashi fell into step next to him, wheels turning in his mind as his heart continued its panicked hammering in his chest. 

Had he thought about dating Kei before? Yes. But never seriously. It was a lazy dream he’d had only once or twice when the two of them were watching a romantic comedy together or were walking home in just the right light. And the fantasy didn’t get any farther than maybe a kiss, like how a rom-com rarely showed what happened to the couple after the first kiss except for the two of them holding hands during the conclusion of the film. He’d never put much thought into what a relationship between him and Kei would be like. 

But he’d be lying if he said he hadn’t thought about it before, and that he wasn’t wholly opposed to the idea… 

“Hey! Yamaguchi!” 

Kei and Tadashi both stopped, turning back to see Hinata chasing after them, Kageyama on his heels. 

“I just wanted to say I’m sorry I said anything,” Hinata said apologetically when he reached them, staring Tadashi right in the eye. “I just assumed…”

“You should never assume anything, dumbass,” Kageyama muttered, appearing at his shoulder not a moment later.

Hinata puffed up, turning to the setter. “You assume things all the time!”

“No I don’t!” Kageyama shot back. 

“Yes you do!”

“Name three times!”

“I’m not dealing with this,” Tsukishima announced to no one in particular, turning around and resuming walking. Yamaguchi only watched Hinata and Kageyama for a moment more before turning to join him. 

“Sorry about that,” the brunette said contritely as the sound of the squabbling behind them quieted down to a normal conversation. “The team got them all fired up in the locker room and you know it’s hard to get out when everyone’s so excited…”

“What was he apologizing to you for?” Kei asked abruptly. 

Tadashi bit his bottom lip, knowing he could either lie and be interrogated further or spill it now. He chose the latter. “Hinata asked me if we were dating.”

Kei blinked, but kept his eyes focused on the street ahead of them. “And?”

“I told him that was ridiculous,” Tadashi replied, shaking his head with a contrite laugh. Kei hummed in response, still looking straight ahead. Tadashi hummed back, shoving his hands in his pockets. “We do kinda act like a couple, though.”

“Hm.” Kei pressed his lips together in thought. “How so?”

“Well, we always walk home together,” Tadashi pointed out, gesturing to the sidewalk with a dry smile. “And we walk to school together. We sit together at lunch and on the bus and between classes. We study together on weeknights. We hang out on weekends. I know all of your favorite songs, and you know all of mine. And I could replace songs with anything, really, foods, colors, subjects in school, sports, seasons, curse words…”

“I get it.”

The brunette nodded shortly. “We just spend a lot of time together and know almost everything about each other. Like, I know all of your tells, and you seem to know mine…”

“Tells?”

Tadashi nodded again. “Most of the time, I can tell when you’re lying. I can tell when you’re smiling because you’re happy, which is different from the smile you use when you’re being sarcastic with someone, and also different from the smile you put up to hide that you’re upset. I can read it in your face and your body language when you’re disappointed or scared or whatever. We’ve known each other for so long, it doesn’t take much for me to read you anymore. And I know you can read me pretty well too.”

Kei kept walking, eyes focused on the ground as he processed Tadashi’s words. Tadashi was right, he had to admit it. They knew _everything_ about each other. And they did spend an awful lot of time together. Kei had never really thought about it before. Tadashi was just a constant presence in his life, if not in person then by phone. He’d never considered other implications of their closeness before, never considered that there could be something beyond what they had now. 

“That’s all just best friend stuff, though,” Kei said finally, shaking his head in disbelief. 

“Right,” Tadashi agreed. “That’s what I told the team.” They walked on in silence, Tadashi’s words hanging in the air between them. Kei frowned. _That’s what I told the team._ Kei felt his heart rate start to increase. Hinata, the most oblivious person Kei had ever met, had asked Tadashi if they were dating. And if Hinata had picked up on something going on between them, that meant that the rest of the team _had_ to have noticed something there too. And if the team was on board, maybe there was something else he was missing there. 

“Have you ever thought about it?” 

Kei’s thoughts were interrupted by Tadashi’s voice. The blonde turned his eyes towards the boy walking next to him. Tadashi didn’t meet his gaze, focusing on the ground instead, his cheeks turning pink. 

“About what?” the blonde asked. 

Tadashi shrugged. “About us dating?” 

“Have you?”

“Only a little.”

“A little?”

“Maybe once or twice,” Tadashi admitted, taking a deep breath. “But I never really thought… I guess I never even thought it was possible.”

Kei nodded, hearing his own anxiety mirrored in Tadashi’s voice. “I’ve kind of thought about it too.”

Yamaguchi looked up at him, eyes flashing. “Kind of?”

Kei shrugged. “I mean, not extensively but the thought has crossed my mind before.”

“Same,” Tadashi agreed with a nod. He stopped walking abruptly and Kei paused with him. The brunette placed his hands on his hips. “So, what do we want to do about this?”

“What do you mean?”

“Do you…” Tadashi looked off down the street, gathering his words. He licked his lips and swallowed hard before meeting Kei’s eyes. “Clearly, other people see something between us that we don’t. Or we do but we think it’s something else. But that brings up the question of who’s right about that…” He stared off at the sky for a moment, face wrinkling in thought, before he shook his head, focusing back on the matter at hand. “So we already act like people expect a couple to act, therefore people we know think that’s a sign that we should actually become a couple. But… Would it even be a good idea?”

“I don’t know,” Kei stated, hardly absorbing any of Tadashi’s attempted logic. “But you said that the team…”

“The team already thought we were together,” Tadashi cut him off, nodding vigorously. His hands were shaking. He was nervous. Kei felt his own nerves start to tremble, Tadashi’s anxiety feeding his own. “Because apparently being best friends means you’re in love.”

“Are you in love?” Kei didn’t realize how odd the question was until Tadashi’s eyes widened, staring up at him with an intensity that made the blonde’s stomach lurch apprehensively. “W-with me, that is.”

“I… think so,” Tadashi whispered, so quiet Kei probably wouldn’t have heard them if they weren’t three steps apart. The brunette nodded to himself. It felt right to say it. “Yeah, I think so.”

Kei nodded too, not dropping Tadashi’s gaze. “I think I am too.” It felt right as the words rolled off his tongue. He’d never put a word to his feelings for his best friend before. All he knew was that he was happier with Tadashi around, and wanted the brunette to always be a part of his life, to always be right next to him no matter where life took them. He’d never considered that love, but he couldn’t deny that those four letters seemed to fit just right when he thought about his current relationship with Tadashi. And if they already fit so well, why not take it a step further?

“Tadashi?”

“Yeah?”

Kei froze, only his heart still beating wildly in his chest. This was the way to do it. If this was going to happen, it had to be now.

Without another moment gone by, Kei closed the space between them and, twining his hands around the back of Tadashi’s head, fingers curling in the brunette’s hair, kissed him. 

And it was more uncomfortable than he’d expected. His lips were just off center, and he couldn’t tell if he was pressing too hard or soft or what, and Kei felt stupid for it doing it at all. 

But Tadashi didn’t move away. He stiffened slightly, most likely out of surprise more than disgust. And Kei was pleasantly surprised when he felt the other boy kiss him back, soft and sweet and shy and everything that kissing Yamaguchi Tadashi was supposed to be. Only a little more awkward.

The blonde pulled away first, still feeling incredibly stupid. 

“Tsukki? What was that for?” Tadashi asked, voice endearingly breathless as he searched Kei’s face for something, anything, that would explain the connection between their current conversation and that kiss. 

“Aren’t we dating?” Kei said simply. 

Tadashi smiled. “I don’t think we properly agreed to anything yet.”

Kei’s eyes narrowed. “I was trying to be romantic.”

“What?”

“Like in those cheesy romantic comedies you always make me watch. The kiss at the end means they’re dating,”

Tadashi laughed softly, nervously. “That’s not how real life works.”

“What then? Do we have to sign a contract or something?” Kei asked. Tadashi laughed again, more natural this time, as if laughing released his nerves into the wind. “No really. Do I just ask you or what?”

“Tsukishima Kei, would like to go out with me?” 

“Yes, I would like that.”

Tadashi’s smile brightened as he wrapped his fingers around Kei’s hands. “Then we’re dating.”

~

The response was instantaneous. Within seconds of Kei changing his status on Facebook, his phone blew up with messages. 

**Kiyoko: ☺ So happy to hear about you and Yamaguchi**

**Ennoshita: Congratulations, Tsukishima!**

**Suga: Tsukishima, is this a joke? It better not be a joke.**

**Noya: FINALLY!!!!!!**

**Akaashi: Congrats**

**Bokuto: TSUUUUUKIIIIIIII!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!**

**Kuroo: Took you two long enough.**

**Tanaka: TSUKISHIMA YOU LUCKY LITTLE SHIT! HOW ARE YOU IN A REALTIONSHIP BEFORE ME?!?!**

**Hinata: I knew you two were dating! I KNEW IT!**

**Yachi: I’m so happy for you and Tadashi!!!!**

**Bokuto: Details or it didn’t happen!!!!!!**

**Kageyama: Why is Hinata sending me pictures of something you posted on Facebook? What happened? What did you do?**

**Tanaka: But really, if you break his heart I will not hesitate to break your face**

**Daichi: Suga’s actually hyperventilating right now. Please tell me that you and Yamaguichi are actually dating and this isn’t a joke.**

**Bokuto: DON’T IGNORE ME!**

Kei barely had time to read them before he heard footsteps crashing towards his door. He turned around in time to watch his brother careen around the corner, grabbing the doorframe to keep himself from tumbling forward and falling to the floor. Akiteru leaned heavily against the doorframe, hands braced on his knees, staring wide-eyed at his younger brother. 

“Did you actually ask him out?” Akiteru asked, panting. 

“Yeah,” Kei replied. 

“So you two are actually together?” Akiteru asked incredulously. 

“Yeah.” Akiteru made a noise that sounded somewhere between choking and yelling, a noise Kei supposed was meant to be a laugh. Based on the shocked sound and the smile that had taken over his brother’s face, Kei was scared that Akiteru might start crying. And that was something he wasn’t prepared to deal with. “Why is everyone making such a big deal out of this?”

“Because everyone has been waiting for this,” Akiteru said around another laugh. Kei raised an eyebrow. “Seriously, everyone who knows you and Tadashi knows you two are in love. It’s so obvious, Kei! Even Mom was asking me if you two were together or not!” Kei didn’t answer, keeping his face blank as he stared at his brother, absorbing that information and trying to stop the heat spreading across his cheeks. “So how’d you do it?”

Kei sighed, shifting in his chair. “He told me the team was spreading rumors about us being together, so we talked about it, I kissed him, and we’re dating now.”

“You _kissed_ him?!” Akiteru exclaimed, vaulting into the room. Kei flinched. “Just like that?”

“That’s what they do in the movies…”

Kei didn’t have time to move away before Akiteru glided over to him and wrapped him in a tight, awkward hug. The young boy squirmed immediately, but his brother held tight. 

“You’re such a dork,” Akiteru cooed, squeezing Kei tighter. 

“Get off me,” Kei said in reply, squirming harder to escape. But the harder he tried, the stronger Akiteru’s hold seemed to become. 

“Now we have something else to talk about,” the young man said happily, finally releasing Kei from the hug, but still pinning him down by holding onto his shoulders. The younger boy simply continued to glare up at his brother. Akiteru refused to back down, still smiling like a dork. “I can finally impart me knowledge of all things romantic to you.”

“Why did you phrase it that way?” Kei moaned, trying to weasel his way out of his brother’s hold. 

“Oh calm down, that wasn’t weird at all,” Akirteru chided. He finally released Kei’s shoulders though, standing back up to his full height, hands placed proudly on his hips. “I’m just excited you’re finally in a relationship.” Kei blinked up at his brother, keeping his expression blank. “Really. Whether it was Tadashi or anyone else, I’m just happy that you’re finally taking an interest in someone else in that way. But especially Tadashi. Cause it’s been kinda painful to watch how oblivious you two were. Thank God the team called you out on it.” 

Kei looked back at his desk, unsure how to respond to that. Akiteru recognized the look on his face, though, understood the conflicted gleam in his brother’s eyes. Kei was somewhere between annoyance and agreement, simultaneously wanting to argue Akiteru’s point and accept its truth. He hadn’t been expecting himself to fall into this kind of relationship either, and perhaps he still couldn’t come to terms with the fact that he was in one. 

“I don’t mean it in a bad way, Kei. I’m just really happy for you,” Akiteru stated, trying to drive his point home. 

“I know,” the younger boy mumbled. “But I don’t want your help.”

“Okay, that’s fine.” Akiteru held up his hands to show he was done fighting. “But I’ll be here if you ever do, okay?” Kei hummed in response, already turning back to his books. Akiteru nodded, letting himself out of the room and closing the door behind him. 

Akiteru was only a little surprised to hear a knock on his bedroom door at 2 a.m. And not surprised at all that it was Kei asking for dating advice. 

~

At 6:30 a.m. the next morning, Kei stood on the corner where he usually met Tadashi to walk to school, nervously shifting his weight between his feet. His headphones were on, but no music was playing. His thoughts were too loud and jumbled for any extra noise. 

After Akiteru had pinned him down and told him how proud he was of him for asking Tadashi out, Kei’s brain refused to shut up. He hadn’t realized exactly what it meant for him to be in a relationship. He’d assumed the only thing that changed was his Facebook status, and that was hardly anything at all. But the way Akiteru was smiling last night… this was bigger than just labels. This meant something to people beyond just Kei and Tadashi, who it was supposed to matter to the most. 

And perhaps that was the reason he’d gone to his brother’s door in the middle of the night asking for advice. Because he realized he was way in over his head, and refused to look like an idiot in front of his peers, the team, and especially Tadashi. 

“Hi Tsukki!”

The blonde flinched, glancing up as Tadashi waved, walking towards him up the street. He had a granola bar in hand, which he appeared to be in the process of eating. Kei guessed he’d overslept and didn’t have time to eat breakfast. It happened two to three times during a good week. 

“Hey sweetheart,” Kei greeted as soon as the brunette met up with him.

Tadashi choked on his granola bar, eyes blowing wide. Kei’s face went red as he froze like a statue, watching in masked horror as his boyfriend regained his breath. “Yamaguchi?”

“Did you just call me sweetheart?” the brunette asked breathlessly, staring up at him in utter confusion. 

Kei shrugged, feeling like his question was an accusation. “We have to be romantic now. I thought it would be appropriate.” 

Tadashi stared up at him, searching his face for something. Kei stared back, feeling ridiculously stupid for even using a nickname. He cursed Akiteru in his head, (who’d told him pet names were a common thing,) already preparing to tell him off after school. 

But his mental tirade at his brother was broken as he felt Tadashi grab ahold of his hand, weaving his warm fingers through the blonde’s. Kei stared down at their fingers before meeting Yamaguchi’s eyes. 

“ _This_ is romantic,” Tadashi insisted with a bright smile, tugging gently at his hand as he started off down the street. Kei let him lead for a bit, watching their hands. He’d held hands with Tadashi before, but it was a gesture meant for moral support during horror films or getting an injury bandaged. It had never held any other significance. Yet here they were, holding hands for no greater reason than to hold hands. So innocent, and yet so meaningful. 

As they walked hand-in-hand towards the school and the club room and the team, who were no doubt chomping at the bit with excitement to see them ‘together,’ Kei was vaguely aware that they were walking into new territory, and he knew that Tadashi was aware of it too. And a hope echoed in his heart that they were ready for it. 

~

Their first day as a couple went about as well as expected. Every single member of the team ambushed them as soon as they got to the gym. Those who were there when they arrived, (only the third years thankfully,) quietly congratulated them, not making too big of a deal about it. But those who got there after made a big fuss about it, especially Hinata, Tanaka, and Noya, who proudly took credit for convincing them to finally “make it official.” The three continued to pop in on them throughout the day, checking in to make sure they hadn’t broken up yet. 

And the next two days followed a similar pattern: Yamaguchi held Tsukishima’s hand as they walked to and from school, they continued to sit by each other at lunch, they still texted each other funny pictures and videos at night, and the team paid them a little more attention than usual. 

Dating didn’t seem all that difficult. 

Or at least it hadn’t until now. Kei took a deep breath through his nose, exhaling through his mouth as he stared at the door of the Yamaguchi residence. 

He’d been replaying their conversation from Thursday night in his mind on repeat for the past two hours. 

_“Do you want to get food this weekend?” Kei asked casually, as he had so many times before._

_“Like a date?” Tadashi asked, innocently cocking his head to the side._

_“What? Oh.” Kei paused. “Yeah. Like a date, I guess.”_

He felt incredibly lame in the moment, and felt himself sinking deeper and deeper into a hole the more he thought about it. For as smoothly as the first three days had gone, Kei felt like he was terrible at this dating thing. All of his nicknames felt stiff and awkward, he still couldn’t get used to holding hands, and he couldn’t even properly ask for a date. And now he couldn’t even knock on the Yamaguchi’s door when he used to walk right into the house as if he lived there. Kei certainly didn’t like butterflies that had taken up a permanent residence in his stomach, nor did he enjoy the way his mind kicked into high gear whenever he was with Yamaguchi now, assessing every move he made and word he said, ensuring that he didn’t make a complete fool of himself. All of it made him feel like he wasn’t cut out for this boyfriend shit. 

And it didn’t help that Tadashi was the same old Tadashi he’d always been. The same boy with the freckles who had been by his side for years, who was his biggest fan and critic, who supported him no matter what. He hadn’t changed, but everything else had. And that meant that no matter what changed, Tadashi would still be there by his side no matter how ridiculously awful he was at being his boyfriend. Then why was Kei so nervous to get this right? 

Adjusting the collar on his shirt, Kei took one more deep breath before he knocked his fist against the door three times. He took a step back after, rolling his shoulders and tightening his grip on the rose in his left hand. 

The door opened to Tadashi’s smiling face. The boy was wearing a red t-shirt (one Kei recognized as one of the brunette’s favorites,) with a beige cardigan sweater, and dark jeans. 

“Hi,” Tadashi greeted brightly. 

“Hello.” Kei held out his flower mechanically. 

Tadashi stared down at the rose, his lips pursing curiously. “What’s this?”

“For you,” Tsukishima said by way of explanation as he handed the rose over. Tadashi accepted it, still looking skeptically at the flower. But he was still smiling, a little sunnier than before. “I know green’s your favorite color, but the stem’s green, so I went with red instead. Because red is a romantic color.”

“Red is a romantic color,” Tadashi repeated to himself as he walked back down the hall without another word. 

“Are you mocking me?” Kei called after him, unsure if he was supposed to follow or not. 

“Maybe,” Tadashi called back. “I’m just gonna put this in water, then we can leave.”

“Okay.” Kei stood in the entryway, staring absently at the walls. He’d been to Yamaguchi’s house hundreds of times. He’d never had a problem with walking right in like he belonged there. Something held him back this time. He blamed the stupid butterflies. 

Tadashi reappeared before he could get too deep in his thoughts though. “Alright, let’s go,” he said brightly as he slid on his shoes. Kei nodded in reply, stepping back out onto the porch before the brunette, who closed and locked the door behind them before they set off down the street. 

“You look nice,” Tadashi said, nudging Kei with his elbow. The taller boy shrugged, glancing down at his blue button up. “That shirt really brings out the color in your eyes.”

“Thanks?”

The brunette laughed, still gazing up at Kei’s eyes. “Isn’t complementing each other something couples are supposed to do?”

Kei shrugged again, pulling a face. “I guess. But it still feels weird coming from you.” 

“What do you mean? I compliment you all the time,” Tadashi asked incredulously. 

“You compliment me indirectly to other people. I’m not used to receiving it head on like this,” Kei explained, glancing down at his companion. Tadashi huffed, hitting Kei’s shoulder lightly, earning him a chuckle from the taller boy. “I’m just saying. It’s gonna take some time for me to get used to that.” But even as he said the words, hinting at the nerves he couldn’t quite get to settle, he reached over for Tadashi’s hand. 

The brunette squeezed his hand as soon as their fingers wrapped together. “Just like I’m gonna need time to be okay hearing you call me ‘sweetheart?’” His tone of voice was so dry, Kei refused to even meet his eyes, already knowing the devious gleam he’d find there. 

“Shut up, Yamaguchi.”

“Sorry Tsukki.”

~

Kei chose their favorite diner for their first date. That way, they could be in and out in less than an hour if they realized this wasn’t working. Akiteru, while trying to give his brother advice, had told him more than one horror story of a date that stalled because they had nothing to talk about. Not that he was worried that he and Tadashi would have nothing to talk about, but he wasn’t taking any chances

However, Kei told himself that wasn’t why he picked this place, convincing himself that it was because this was their spot and it was only right that it would be the site of their first date. He wasn’t sure which reason to believe, deciding on a mix of both. 

“You want to find a table, and I’ll go order?” Tadashi asked as they entered the diner. 

“Sure.” Kei squeezed Tadashi’s hand before moving off into the restaurant to find a seat. He found a table in the corner of the room, right by the windows. Tadashi always liked seats by windows so that he could watch the people passing by. And that’s what Kei did, watch the people outside, waiting for Tadashi to return. He was so wrapped up in people watching that he didn’t even hear the brunette come back.

“Okay, strawberry milkshake for you, chocolate for me, and fries that I’m willing to share only because we’re on a date.” Tadashi slid a cup in front of Kei, slipping a straw next to it. Kei didn’t move, simply staring down at the cup in front of him as the brunette slipped into the chair across from him and yielded the fries to the middle of the table. Only then did he notice Kei’s silence. “What is it? Is something wrong?” 

“You knew my order.”

“Tsukki, we come here all the time. Of course I know your usual order,” Tadashi laughed, slipping his straw into his milkshake. Kei nodded to himself before doing the same and taking a sip. The cool, strawberry flavor calmed him, brought him back to the countless hours he and Tadashi had spent in here, drinking milkshakes and talking about nothing in so many words. 

“So tell me why you chose to go out with me tonight,” Kei posed nonchalantly, inspired by the happy memories. “Because I’m with you purely for aesthetics.”

“Oh yeah?” Tadashi asked, raising his eyebrows. 

“Your freckles, they speak to me.” Kei gestured towards Tadashi as if he were an art piece. 

The brunette giggled. “And what do they say?”

“I don’t know. It’s all in French.”

The giggles turned into a laugh. “Well, I only agreed to go out with you because of your friendly smile and personable demeanor.” Kei scowled at him, earning him a cat-like grin from the brunette. “There it is!” 

On a whim, Kei picked up a fry and bent it into a U shape, holding it in front of his mouth. “Better?”

“You’re a dork.” Tadashi shook his head, smiling even as he said it. Kei shrugged before dipping the fry into his milkshake before popping it into his mouth. Tadashi stared at him in horror, a strangled squeak escaping his throat. “Tsukki! What did you do?”

“What?” 

“How could you disgrace a French fry like that?” Tadashi gasped, utterly offended. Kei blinked at him, holding his gaze as he picked up another fry and plunged it into his milkshake before eating it. Tadashi frowned at him, eyes narrowing. “How dare you?”

And suddenly, they had a lot to talk about on their first date. 

~  
The Great Fry Debate had blended into a deep discussion of semantics, which somehow led to a discussion of names, which led them to volleyball and finally the team. Which they were will discussing as they pushed through the door of the diner and started their walk home. Evening had turned to night while they argued over the right way to eat a French fry, and the busy street was now illuminated by the lights inside the buildings lining the road and the streetlamps towering over them. The sky was dark, a solid, cloudless purply-black, the half-moon shining bright above them. 

The two boys let their conversation come to a comfortable end as they walked, hands joined between them. Their steps fell into sync as they passed from the busy center of town into the side streets, where the streetlamps took over as the major light source. The only sound they heard were their footsteps echoing back to them. Perfectly quiet and perfectly comfortable. 

“Hold up,” Tadashi said, pulling Kei by the elbow until they were standing side by side. “Lean in a bit,” the brunette instructed, holding out his phone in front of them. Kei did as directed, angling his body in and slipping his arm around Tadashi’s back. He gave a small smile as Tadashi pressed the button, capturing the photo. He didn’t move his arm as the brunette pulled the phone close to assess the picture.

“Aww,” Yamaguchi cooed, angling the phone to Kei could see it too. “We’re cute.”

“You’re cute,” Kei replied, squeezing the shorter boy’s waist where his hand rested. Tadashi hummed in response, turning up to press a gentle peck of a kiss against Kei’s cheek. The blonde felt his face ignite at the touch, his skin burning where Tadashi’s lips had touched him. He squeezed his hip again in response, watching idly as the brunette opened up Instagram.

“This is going to be our first Instagram post as a couple,” Tadashi explained, staring intently at the screen. Kei snorted. “What? It has to be good!”

“I’m not judging.”

“But you are though,” Tadashi replied, voice reminiscent of a whine. Kei just hummed as he watched Tadashi add his caption: Survived our first date! <3 @tsukishima-k #YesWeAreDating #FirstDate #AdventuresOfTsukkiAndYams

“What’s with the last caption?” Kei asked, squinting at his screen. “Adventures with Tsukki and Yams?”

“I thought it would be cute,” Tadashi said defensively, craning his neck up to look his boyfriend in the eye. Kei was overwhelmed by how pretty he looked in that position: dark eyes glittering under the light of the streetlamps, hair falling gracefully around his head, freckled face upside down and angled just right. “It can be our thing.”

“Do we need a thing?”

Tadashi shrugged. “No. But I figured why not? It could be fun.”

Kei nodded. “Sure.” He took Tadashi’s hand again and began to walk forward, resuming their journey home. The brunette didn’t protest, quietly falling into step with him again, smiling absently to himself. They weren’t far from the Tsukishima’s house now, where they’d decided earlier to watch a movie after the dinner part of the date. 

The silence continued until they entered the Tsukishima residence. 

“I picked the restaurant, so you have to pick the movie we watch,” Kei stated, hanging up both of their jackets in the hall. “So what’ll it be?”

Tadashi shrugged. “I’m good with anything, really.”

“You have to pick.”

Tadashi groaned. “Disney?”

“Okay.”

In the end, they decided on _Tangled_ , something light and fun that they both enjoyed, (Kei had never explicitly said that he liked the film, but Tadashi had heard him hum the melodies to the songs before, and often caught his lips mouthing the words whenever they watched it. It was one of Tadashi’s favorite things about the film.)

But there was nothing light about _Tangled_ this time. Tadashi felt his heart start hammering against his ribs as the opening credits began. This was the first movie they were watching together as a couple. He bit his lip as his brain started turning cartwheels inside his skull. He had no idea what he was supposed to do here. Were they supposed to cuddle now? Or did they have to wait for the second date for that? The third date? Was this even a date? Yes, this was a date. They’d decided that on Thursday. 

As the first notes of the opening song began to play, Tadashi let his hand casually fall between the two of them, palm up. His heart hammered harder as soon as he did it, and his muscles felt so tense he feared they might snap. But he didn’t move it. He’d made his move, and now he just had to wait and see if Kei would notice and make another move. 

One song rolled into the next, and Tadashi’s hand still rested between them, empty. He kept his eyes glued to the screen too, scared of what he’d see if he snuck a peek over at Kei’s face. A pack of butterflies had taken up residence in his stomach, fluttering more violently with every minute that passed with his hand just out in the open like that. Sure, they’d been dating for a few days now and they’d already held hands loads of times. But last time they did, it was for show, in public, showcasing their new relationship status to the team to prove that it wasn’t some weird joke. Now that it was just the two of them, the thought of their fingers laced together freaked Tadashi out. In a good way, the best way, a happy kind of nervous. But nervous nonetheless. 

And the butterflies intensified when Kei’s hand dropped next to his. Tadashi kept his eyes focused forward, but the nerves in his hand were screaming where Kei’s thumb brushed against his. 

Ever so slowly, Tadashi pushed his hand a centimeter closer. 

He felt Kei reciprocate the motion. 

In one swift movement, Tadashi flipped his palm so that his hand covered Kei’s, lacing his fingers tightly between the blonde’s. The butterflies in his stomach exploded, multiplying exponentially. He could barely focus for the rest of the movie. But he did a decent job of keeping his eyes focused on the screen as if he were watching intently. He gave the right reactions at the right times. Anyone watching the two of them now would probably guess that they’d been holding hands through movies for ages, that this wasn’t a monumental moment for them. 

Something about that made Tadashi’s heart race, but with excitement instead of anxiety for once. 

When the movie finished, Kei turned towards his companion, face blank but eyes bright. “Now what?”

“Now…” Tadashi pulled his phone from his pocket, checking the time. He blinked. “Now I go home before my mom cuts my head off for breaking curfew without telling her.”

Kei nodded, accepting the seriousness of the situation without complaint. They’d dealt with the wrath of Tadashi’s mom about curfew only two times in the past four years, and neither one was willing to make it three. Not even for a first date. 

Both boys stood up from the couch, hands still clasped together. Both looked down at their joined fingers, then up to each other’s eyes. Kei nodded and Tadashi hummed, their hands remaining joined as they moved towards the door. Kei only let go when Tadashi moved to slip on his shoes so that the blonde could grab his jacket. 

“You want me to walk you home?” 

“No, I think I’ll be alright,” Tadashi replied, smiling up at Kei as he finished sliding his left shoe on and stood back up to his full height. The blonde simply nodded in response. “Well, goodbye, I guess.”

“Goodbye,” Kei said in reply. They stood there, staring blankly at each other, unsure what to do now. Tadashi opened his arms hesitantly, and Kei mimicked his movement. They crossed the distance between them, entering into an awkward hug that lasted for all of three seconds. 

“Bye,” Tadashi muttered quickly before turning back to the door and exiting the house with a small wave back at Kei. As soon as the door clicked shut, the blonde’s face fell into his hands. Talk about a lame ending…

“Time out, what was that?”

Kei jumped and whirled around, glaring. His gaze softened only a bit when he saw it was Saeko leaning in the kitchen doorway, watching him with the amused, cat-like grin he was used to seeing on her brother. 

“What do you mean?”

Saeko gestured to the door. “That goodbye. What the hell was that?” Kei shrugged. The young woman shook her head. “You two are ridiculous.” Kei’s glare sharpened dangerously. “But that’s to be expected.”

“How so?”

Saeko shrugged. “You’ve been best friends for how long? Of course it’s going to be awkward to move from best friend to boyfriend. You have so much less ground to cover.”

“I don’t follow…”

“Stop me if I’m wrong, but you and Yamaguchi started this relationship as best friends,” Saeko began, crossing her arms over her chest, “so your relationship has less room to grow. You already know everything about each other, you love spending time together, you know how to read each other up and down, inside and out, backwards and forwards. All that’s left is the more romantic stuff, and the physical stuff, where neither of you have any experience. And neither of you ever seriously considered the relationship ever being anything more than friendship, did you? It was only when my brother and the rest of the team called you out on it that you even realized that romance could be involved, right?”

Kei didn’t answer. He wasn’t sure how to. He couldn’t tell if he was angry at her for reading him so easily, or mad at himself for agreeing with her. Either way, he felt vaguely irritated and somewhat confused by her words. The only reaction he gave was clenching his hands into fists at his side. Saeko took that as a sign to push forward. 

“No, you didn’t,” she answered herself. Kei avoided her eyes, staring at the floor. “This is new territory for both of you, and you’re trying to translate your old relationship into the new one, which doesn’t always work out when you go from friends to more than friends. So of course it’s gonna be awkward.”

“How would you know?” Kei asked, voice low enough to almost be a whisper. 

Saeko counted on her fingers as she went: “One, I’ve been in many a relationship in my time so I know how they work. Two, I’ve had friends in similar positions to yours and know how they felt about it. Three, my brother talks enough about you and Yamaguchi for me to get a general sense of how the two of you work. And four, I’m dating your brother which means that I both get to watch the two of you interact when you’re over here AND listen to Akiteru talk about you. Which he does. Quite a bit.”

Kei looked up at the mention of his brother, eyes still narrowed and his mouth drawn in a thin line. Saeko stared back with a satisfied smirk of her own. 

“So it’s supposed to be awkward,” Kei stated. 

“Yes.” Saeko nodded. “But it won’t be forever. You two just have to ride it out until it feels right. Find a balance between friendship and romance. Because that’s what it’s meant to be: a mix of the two. You two already have the friendship down. Now try to figure out how romance fits in. Don’t rush it, don’t force it, and I think you’ll find that everything’s gonna be just fine.” 

Kei nodded. “Okay. Thanks.” Without another word, he dashed up the stairs. Saeko shook her head, watching the space where he’d just disappeared as Akiteru rounded the corner behind her.

“Well that went well,” he stated plainly, also looking up at the stairs. “He’s never been that willing to listen to me.”

“That’s cause you’re his brother,” Saeko pointed out, poking Akiteru’s shoulder. “He’s been listening to you his whole life. He only stayed here so long cause it would’ve been rude to run out on a lady.”

“Eh, be that as it may, I think you really did help him,” Akiteru continued, leaning back against the wall. Saeko joined him, looking up at him expectantly. “He’s been jumpy all week whenever Mom or I brought up Tadashi. I think he’s really nervous about this relationship.”

“Well Kei doesn’t like to fail,” Saeko pointed out, looking up at Akiteru, her eyes searching him for something. “He doesn’t like to look stupid, so of course he feels nervous about dating Yamaguchi. It’s clear that that kid’s better at it than your brother. But that’s not saying much, cause they both kinda suck at it.” Akiteru snorted, his cheeks blushing pink. Saeko smiled. “But I think it’s because they just want this to go well. That’s why they’re stressed, and that’s what’s making it awkward.”

“I’ve thought the same thing too,” the young man nodded, staring at the stairs once again. “Thank you for talking to him.”

“Anytime,” Saeko replied. “I think he’s finally starting to like me.”

Akiteru laughed. “One down, one to go.”

The young woman clicked her tongue, hitting his shoulder lightly. “Ryuu likes you! He tells me everyday.”

“Doubt that,” Akiteru said as he waltzed back into the kitchen, Saeko on his heels, already preparing her next argument. 

~  
And so Kei and Tadashi’s formal relationship entered its second week of existence. Even after his talk with Saeko, Kei couldn’t figure out what she meant by balancing romance with friendship, and decided to layer on the more romantic stuff until it felt natural, sharing his plan with Yamaguchi, who agreed that they could try it out and make it work. So Tadashi added hearts at the end of his text messages, and nearly had a heart attack when Kei texted one back to him. Kei tried to put his arm around Tadashi when the team was hanging out at Ukai’s store after practice, but ended up getting too embarrassed by the team’s staring and gave up. They held hands on the way to school and the way home, trying out a different position every day to find one that was most comfortable. 

Kei made a mix tape for Tadashi, but he hardly knew any of the songs. They were all cheesy love songs Akiteru had picked out for him when Kei had asked him and Saeko for help making something romantic for Yamaguchi. But the brunette seemed to love it anyway, and Kei made a point of learning the songs on his own. They weren’t as bad as he’d expected. 

In response for the CD, Tadashi made Kei a strawberry shortcake, admitting that the gift was his third attempt and that the first two had been complete failures. Kei said it was the best gift he’d ever received, (and he wasn’t lying either; no one had ever taken the time to physically make him something before.) 

Yamaguchi’s hashtag also became a sensation among their friends, who began to take snapshots of the two of them and share them online including #AdventuresWithTsukkiAndYams. Tanaka and Noya were the most frequent culprits, but no one on Karauno was innocent of it by the end of the week, (sure, some of them hadn’t used it themselves, but they’d all been involved in approving the ones that were posted, so they were all guilty by association.) Bokuto expressed his frustration at not being able to join in on almost every picture, and Kuroo went so far as to photoshop pictures of Tsukishima and Yamaguchi together just to annoy Bokuto. 

“We need to ban others from using our hashtag,” Kei stated on Thursday, staring at his phone as he and Tadashi attempted to study in his room. 

“Why?” Tadashi asked, not looking up from his notes. Books and papers were scattered all over Kei’s desk in front of him. He jumped slightly when his phone buzzed from somewhere beneath the papers. 

“Check your phone.”

Tadashi rolled his eyes as he dug his phone out from beneath his homework and opened the picture Kei had sent him. It was Kuroo’s latest photoshop, a creation he’d made from two very blurry pictures of the two of them from training camp. Tadashi squinted at the picture, not even sure they were the two people in it. 

“Why do we need to impose a ban on this?” he asked, still staring at the picture. 

“Because I don’t want those weirdos from Nekoma trashing it anymore,” Kei replied. 

“What do you mean? This right here is art,” Tadashi insisted, turning around to stare his boyfriend dead in the eye. Kei’s forehead wrinkled in confusion. Tadashi pointed at his phone. “I want to print this and hang it in my room.”

Kei shook his head, turning his attention back to his own homework. “Stop being weird.”

“Alright, Dr. Grant,” Tadashi sighed. Kei’s eyes snapped back up to him. The brunette shrugged, failing to suppress a grin. “Get it? Dr. Grant? Like in _Jurassic Park_?” Kei just stared at him. “I thought of it last night.”

“I hate you,” Kei deadpanned, eyes returning to his history textbook. 

“Would you prefer we stick to Sweetheart and Honey and stuff?”

“No. I just need to think up a new nickname for you now and I’m not really in the mood for that.” He turned a page much rougher than necessary to accentuate his point. Tadashi nodded in response, turning back around in his chair to get back to work himself. 

They worked in silence for all of three minutes before Kei asked: “Are you still gonna call me Tsukki?”

“Of course I will,” Tadashi said as if that were the most obvious thing in the world. He paused his work, turning his full attention to the blonde on the bed. “Why? Do you want me to stop?”

“No,” Kei said shortly. “I like it when you call me that. I just… was worried that if we were making up new nicknames, we’d drop the old ones.”

Tadashi smiled, jumping up from his chair and gliding across the room to give the blonde a quick peck on the cheek. “I don’t think it’s physically possible for me to stop calling you Tsukki now.”

Kei’s fingers flew to his face as if he’d been burned. “Why do you always do that?”

“What?” Hurt and confusion colored Tadashi’s eyes as he looked down at him. “I thought you just said you liked it when…”

“No, not the nickname. Those little kisses,” Kei clarified. “Why do you always do that?”

“Isn’t that what you do when you’re a couple?” Tadashi pointed out, nose wrinkling thoughtfully. 

“I guess…”

“Do you want me to stop that, then?”

“No. I just…” He stopped, sighing in frustration and looking off at the floor. 

“What?” Kei mumbled something so quietly Tadashi couldn’t hear. The brunette sat down on the edge of the bed, leaning in closer. “You just what, Kei?” 

The blonde sighed, hiding his face in his hands. “I don’t like it that you’re a better kisser than me.”

Tadashi stared at him, mouth gaping, for five whole seconds before bursting out laughing. Kei’s face reappeared from his hands, twisted with that insulted fury he wore whenever someone laughed at him. The sight of him so worked up only made Tadashi laugh harder. 

“I’m sorry,” the brunette gasped, struggling to control his giggles. “But I can’t believe you’re mad that I’m more romantic than you!”

“You are not more romantic than me!” Kei exclaimed, sitting up suddenly, as if that added credibility to his retort. “I only said you were a better kisser, not that you were more romantic.” Tadashi kept laughing, seemingly unable to stop. As Kei continued to stare him down, he had to fight the urge to laugh with him. Tadashi’s laugh had always been horribly contagious, but he knew that if he broke now, he’d be admitting that his boyfriend was better at being a boyfriend than he was. And there was no way Kei was doing that. 

“Prove it, then,” Tadashi challenged, tapping Kei’s shoulder provokingly. 

The blonde responded by grabbing Tadashi’s hand, threading their fingers together. The brunette stopped laughing immediately, his giggles scared away by the intense look in his boyfriend’s eyes. Sure, he’s seen Kei focused before, his eyes burning bright during volleyball games. But he’d never seen this sort of intensity before, much gentler than the heat of a match, like a steady flame, glowing soft yet strong. 

It was all the more intense for its silence. 

“Tadashi, you are the most beautiful person I know, inside and out,” Kei said. Tadashi felt his breath catch. “You work harder than anyone I’ve ever met. You never give up, and you don’t let anyone else give up either. You give your all to everything you do: school, volleyball, your friends, me. And it’s so inspiring to watch you, especially when your hard work pays off. The smile on your face after one of your serves outwits the other team? Priceless.” 

His other hand moved towards Tadashi’s face, carding his fingers through the other boy’s hair once before letting him thumb linger on his cheek. Tadashi, for his part, remained still, breathless and speechless. “And that’s just on the inside. You’re pretty on the outside too. Your freckles are like little stars. Like you’re my own little galaxy, and we have our own little universe between us.” 

Tadashi smiled slowly, and before Kei knew it, the brunette was doubled over, laughing again. 

“What?!” he snapped, harsher than he intended. 

“That’s just… the cheesiest thing I’ve ever heard!” Tadashi laughed, clearly unable to stop. Tears were brimming in his eyes, and Kei had to work harder to restrain himself from laughing. “I mean, come on. Comparing freckles to stars? That’s the oldest trick in the book! I expected better of you, Tsukki.”

“Better of me?” the blonde challenged, moving forward and pinning the other boy down on the bed by the shoulders. “Were you hoping for cheesier? Like me blathering on about how soft your dark-as-night hair is? Or comparing the color of your eyes to chocolate?” Tadashi was fighting back a whole new round of giggles, encouraging Kei to keep going. “How about the age old ‘you’re the missing puzzle piece I never knew I was missing?’ Or ‘my world was black and white until you came along, and now I see in color?’” 

“Tsukki, stop!” Tadashi pleaded, rubbing his eyes against his shoulder, his arms currently pinned by his boyfriend, who was still trying very hard not to laugh. 

“O, shall I compare thee to a summer’s day? Thou art more lovely and more temperate…” Kei continued, softly caressing Tadashi’s cheek. 

“Stop!” Tadashi repeated, grasping Kei’s wrists and pushing him away. He didn’t get very far, though, as the blonde used the momentum to pull Tadashi up from the bed. He began to lead the shorter boy in a clumsy sort of waltz around the room, Tadashi clinging to him for dear life, laughing anew. 

“Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May, and summer’s lease hath all too short a date,” Kei continued, repositioning his arms so that one was holding Tadashi’s shoulder and the other was clasping his hand, like a fairytale couple. “Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines, and often is his gold complexion dimmed. And every fair from fair sometime declines, by chance, or nature’s changing course, untrimmed.” 

By then, Tadashi had stopped laughing, and had joined in Kei’s recitation, their voices mingling together in the air as they continued to twirl around the room in their haphazard waltz. “But thy eternal summer shall not fade, nor lose possession of that fair thou ow’st, nor shall death brag thou wand’rest in his shade, when in eternal lines to Time thou grow’st.”

Their dance slowed to a stop, but neither boy dropped his position. They stood together like frozen figures in a music box, eyes locked, hands clasped tightly together, as the final couplet filled the space between them. “So long as men can breathe, or eyes can see, so long lives this, and this gives life to thee.”

They stood there as the words faded into nothing, still standing tall like characters straight out of a fairytale. Kei felt his heart swell and his body begin to buzz with something warm and fuzzy as he stared at the boy in front of him, breathing hard from twirling around the room but smiling so brightly up at him, as if he were the only thing in the world that mattered. He’d felt this way before, many times actually. He felt it when Tadashi laughed at his jokes. He felt it when Tadashi refused to wake up the morning after a sleepover. He felt it when Tadashi sent him text messages with pictures of things he thought Kei would like. He felt it when Tadashi yelled at him at the training camp in Tokyo. He felt it when he watched Tadashi serve for the first time during a match. He’d felt it almost as long as he’d known Yamaguchi Tadashi. He’d just never recognized it for it was. 

And part of him knew that Tadashi felt it too. 

But Kei didn’t have to say anything now, as Tadashi broke their trance by wrapping the blonde up in a tight hug. 

“You’re such a dork,” he whispered against Kei’s chest, closing his eyes as he listened to the blonde’s heart hammering in his chest. Kei could only hope he assumed his heart was beating so hard because of their dancing and not something else. Then he remembered that they were dating and it didn’t matter anymore whether he knew how he felt or not. 

And suddenly, despite how awkward their relationship seemed, Kei realized that they had made the right choice. Their relationship was meant to go in this direction, even if they took some detours to get there.

“Some would call it romantic,” Kei replied, hugging his arms around the brunette and holding him close. He felt Tadashi laugh, the vibrations sending shivers through his body. His heart continued to swell in his chest. Kei hadn’t felt this comfortable around Yamaguchi in a while. 

“I think I have a new nickname for you,” Kei said.

“What is it?”

“Polaris. For the North Star.”

“I like it.”

“I don’t think I’m ever going to use it.”

“That’s okay. It’s still pretty romantic.”

“Above or below the mix tape?”

“We’re ranking things now?”

“Yes.”

“Right below the mix tape and above the hashtag.”

Kei smiled. “I’ll take it.”

~

But even as they worked their way around new pet names and established Saturday as their ‘date night,’ both Kei and Tadashi recognized a tension building between them. It wasn’t a bad sort of tension, just… something present between them that wasn’t there before. Neither one could put his finger on it, and both refused to bring it up. But it was there every time Tadashi’s tongue tied up before he used one of those pet names or Kei froze before touching Yamaguchi for something innocent as a high-five or a pat on the back. Nothing was wrong, but something was off. 

“Yamaguchi?” 

Tadashi flinched at the sound of his name, blinking rapidly to clear away his thoughts as he addressed whoever had spoken to him. Sugawara was standing in the doorway to the club room, watching the younger boy with his brow furrowed in concern. Afternoon practice started in five minutes. Tadashi had unintentionally lingered behind the rest of the team, moving slowly as his mind tried to make sense of his feelings. “You okay?”

“Y-yeah,” Yamaguchi replied, giving a small laugh as he finished putting his school bag away and grabbed his sneakers. “I just… got a little lost in thought.” 

“You sure?” Suga asked, stepping forward into the room, amber eyes studying the younger boy closely. Yamaguchi nodded again on impulse. “I’ve noticed you’ve been a little distracted lately. And you seemed really discouraged after practice this morning. I just wanted to make sure…”

“It’s not volleyball.” Yamaguchi’s face flushed apologetically as he cut the third-year off. 

Suga didn’t reprimand him, though. Just kept watching him. “So it’s Tsukishima then?” Yamaguchi nodded. “You want to talk about it?” A pause, then another nod. Suga motioned for the brunette to sit down on the floor and put his shoes on, and Yamaguchi did as he was told. “What’s going on?”

Yamaguchi sighed. “Dating is hard.”

“How so?” Suga asked, cocking his head to the side. 

“Overall, it’s great. I mean, I don’t regret it at all. But I feel like we’re always putting on a front,” Yamaguchi explained, tying his left shoe with more ire than necessary. “Like we’re performing or something. It’s exhausting.”

Suga pursed his lips, moving to sit down next to Yamaguchi. “How does it feel like performing?” he asked softly. 

Yamaguchi shrugged, moving to tie his right shoe. “I don’t know. There’s just… pressure now. It’s like everything’s the same but different.”

“Different how?” Suga pressed. The brunette sighed, folding against his legs as if it were all just too much for him. Suga chuckled softly. “I know, I’m prying. But you’ve been so down all week, I figured you might need someone to talk to about it.”

Yamaguchi sat up slowly, staring blankly at the wall in front of him. He should’ve known someone would ask him about it sooner or later. If the team had been able to pick up on the fact that he and Kei were into each other before the two of them knew it themselves, then there was no doubt they’d be able to recognize that something was amiss between them. He sighed. Maybe talking about it would help. 

The brunette turned towards the older boy. Suga held his gaze, amber eyes set like steel. He wasn’t going anywhere. 

Yamaguchi took a deep breath before letting go. “Everything felt so natural between us before. I didn’t have to think about anything: Tsukki was my best friend and that was that. But now… there’s a new label. And I’m constantly questioning how that changes things between us, if it does at all. And I know he’s questioning it to, and we’re thinking too much instead of being present when we’re together. It’s like we never had anything to worry about before, and now we worry about everything. Do we have to start using nicknames? Do we have to cuddle during movies? How does this change things physically? What _is_ flirting? It’s all just…” He waved his hands in the air, trying to summon words for the feeling. “…It’s just different. There’s a distance now and I feel like we’re doing something wrong because we were so close but now… aren’t you supposed to be closer with the person when you date them?” 

“Yes. But dating your best friend can be like that.” Suga chuckled softly, his eyes wandering to the wall across from them. “It’s hard to find the line between best friend and boyfriend, especially when you’ve been friends as long as you two have. You’ve grown together, so falling in love wasn’t something either of you noticed.” 

Yamaguchi felt his forehead wrinkle with confusion. Suga smiled, noting the younger boy’s distress. “It’s no surprise that you didn’t notice it happening; you fell for the person you grew up with. You didn’t have to bother with flirting or anything like that. It started as a simple appreciation for the other, then grew into a friendship, and from there it became something you both needed in your life, something you couldn’t imagine living without. And before you knew it, it’s suddenly an adoration of sorts. It just happens, and you don’t realize it until someone else says something to you about it, because to you, it just felt like finding a friend.”

Yamaguchi blinked. “Yeah. That’s… that’s it.” 

Suga hummed softly before he continued. “You know, Daichi and I had a similar problem when we started dating.” Yamaguchi nodded, prompting him to go on. “We’d already gotten so close as friends that the relationship was ridiculously awkward at first.”

“How awkward?” Yamaguchi asked cautiously. 

“Let’s see. On our first date, it felt like we had nothing to talk about so we talked about birds the whole time. And neither of us knows much about birds, so I’m sure you can guess how that went. On that date, Daichi spilled every single thing he touched and I choked I think twice? We pretty much stopped interacting in front of the team because we thought they were judging us, and we didn’t know if we were supposed to high five or hug after something good happened. I slapped him across the face the first time he tried to kiss me because I was so tense…”

“Slapped him?!” Yamaguchi exclaimed. 

“Yes,” Suga nodded with a nervous laugh. “I’m not proud, but Daichi thinks it’s funny now…”

“I think Tsukki would’ve murdered me if I slapped him,” Yamaguchi said, shaking his head. He felt his cheeks burn at the knowing gleam in Suga’s eyes, but didn’t go into it any deeper. “How did you and Daichi get through it? The awkwardness?”

“We sat down and talked about it,” Suga answered plainly. “We talked about how something was off, and decided we were making too big a deal out of it. So we went back to acting like we did before and slowly worked up to the more typically ‘romantic’ stuff when it felt natural. Dating done right takes time.”

“Dating takes time,” Yamaguchi repeated, nodding. “So I guess I have to talk to Kei about this, don’t I?”

“That would probably be smart. But you don’t have to rush anything,” Suga replied. “You two have a pretty strong bond. Your problem is that you’re trying to move too fast, force something that will develop naturally on its own. If you both take a second to breathe, maybe you’ll be able to find your rhythm and close the distance.”

“Find the rhythm and close the distance,” Yamaguchi repeated. “We’ll try that. Thank you, Suga-san.”

“Anytime.” The ashy haired boy fixed him with one of his blinding smiles. “And can you promise not to tell anyone about me slapping Daichi instead of kissing him? I promised I wouldn’t let the second years find out.”

“You’re secret’s safe with me.” Yamaguchi nodded. He for one know how vicious the second years could be with information like that. 

~

For the next week, Tadashi didn’t tell anyone about his talk with Suga, Kei included. Simply repeating the older boy’s words to his boyfriend would get them nowhere. It had to come from him, so he simply let his senpai’s words percolate in his brain for the next week, trying to get them to turn into something authentic in his own head. He’d scribble thoughts down in the margins of his notebook or on scrap paper at home, trying to find the perfect way to phrase it. But nothing ever seemed just right. And as he continued to postpone a conversation, their ‘relationship’ continued to drag along awkwardly, like a ship that was trying to sail with its anchor down. 

All of that plus school and practice and extra practice made for an absolutely exhausting week that somehow stretched into two weeks. They’re third ‘date’ night consisted of a walk in the park that was cut short by a surprise storm. And while they ran home and made jokes about dancing instead of actually dancing in it, Tadashi couldn’t resist grabbing Kei by the wrists and getting in a few twirls under the rain before they went inside to dry off, laughing merrily the whole time. He also couldn’t stop himself from kissing the taller boy’s cheek before pulling him inside, an action that had clearly caught Kei off guard, if the blush in his cheeks had anything to say about it. Tadashi considered that little peck the instigator for their second real kiss, as he found his lips pressed to Kei’s almost immediately after they ducked out of the rain. 

Neither one could remember who moved for it first, but it felt as though they’d been drawn into it at the same time. Tadashi found himself balancing on his tiptoes, his hands gripping Kei’s shoulders for support as the taller boy’s arms wrapped protectively around his waist. It wasn’t even that long of a kiss, just long enough to be more of a kiss than last time. And it felt much more natural than their first kiss, so that was a plus. On top of that, Tadashi was convinced there was nothing more beautiful in the world than Tsukishima Kei with wet hair, (and Kei for his part was admittedly entranced with the way Tadashi’s eyes had sparkled under the rain and the way his laugh seemed to electrify the air more than the storm’s lightening ever could.) Tadashi personally considered it their best date yet. Kei consistently reminded him that that was best out of three, but Tadashi insisted it was best anyway. 

By the time their next ‘date night’ rolled around, Tadashi was no closer to talking things out with Kei, and honestly didn’t feel up to it. He’d felt unusually tired since Monday, and had woken up to a headache today. But it was nothing he couldn’t handle, and he’d gone to school feeling fine for the most part. But by lunch, his throat started aching and it felt as if he were swallowing knives. And now, as he and Kei walked with the team out of the gym after practice, Tadashi had to admit he really didn’t feel great. His head felt heavy, his body felt cold, the noise was just a little too loud…

_”Achoo!”_ And now there was that to deal with. 

Tadashi jumped at the feeling of a warm hand on his back, wide eyes turning back to find Tsukishima staring down at him, brow creased with concern. 

“You okay?” Kei asked.

“Yeah,” Tadashi replied, giving him a soft smile before turning away to catch a second sneeze his sleeve. He sniffled, running his wrist under his nose and avoiding Kei’s eyes. In all honesty, he had no idea if he okay or not. Everything suddenly felt really fuzzy. And the noise was still just a little too loud, and the lights were getting brighter too. 

Hinata and Kageyama were yelling at each other about something, (Tadashi hadn’t caught the start of it, so there was little chance he’d be able to pick up on it now,) Tanaka and Noya were yelling with each about something, (again, he’d missed the start of that,) and Ukai was yelling at them all to settle down. It was just like any other night with the team. But something about it all made Tadashi just want to go home. 

A thought that Kei could clearly read on the brunette’s face. Tadashi _always_ wanted to stay with the team, to bond with these people regardless of how loud and obnoxious they were. He never looked this reluctant to stay. And he certainly never looked this tired, or pale. Kei also knew Tadashi hadn’t been sleeping much with his extra practices on top of regular practice and studying. There was also their little stint in the rain on their third date…

Kei had everything figured out before they’d even reached the store. 

In one fluid motion, the blonde unzipped his jacket and slipped it off, wrapping the material around Tadashi’s shoulders. He left his arm hanging around the boy’s shoulders as well. The brunette jumped at the sudden warmth, but it didn’t take long for him to settle into the fabric, snuggling up even closer to Kei’s side. 

“It’s getting cold out,” Kei said absently, staring ahead at Hinata and Kageyama, who were now racing down the hill. “You should’ve worn a jacket if you were sick.”

“I’m not sick,” Tadashi whispered back. But the more he thought about it, he knew that was a lie. And he knew Tsukishima knew it too. The flu had started going around the school, and Suga and Narita were already out with it. It was highly possible that he had it too. Sure, he’d felt fine that morning, but the flu hit fast. And he did feel considerably less well than he did at the start of the day. 

Kei hummed, breaking Tadashi’s train of thought. “We’ll see about that,” the blonde murmured, tightening his hold on the brunette’s shoulders. He didn’t let go as the team stopped for their usual bonding session outside Ukai’s store, earning them a few glances from the team. 

“Hey, Yamaguchi and I are going home. We’ll see you all on Monday,” Tsukishima announced to no one in particular, his arm still held protectively around Tadashi’s shoulders.

“What? Too wrapped up in your whirlwind romance to spend time with us anymore?” Tanaka teased. Tsukishima was prepared to fire one of his trademark snarks back, but paused at the sound of a hoarse cough from the boy next to him. All eyes shifted towards Tadashi, including Kei’s. 

“I’m sorry, guys. I’m not feeling too well, and Tsukki promised to walk home with me,” Yamaguchi said with a repentant smile. And in that moment, Kei couldn’t have been more grateful. The team couldn’t say not to Yamaguchi on a normal day, but there was no way they’d force them to stay now. Sure enough, they were granted passage to go home, followed by sympathetic well-wishes for Tadashi’s health and a teasing warning that they better not try anything tonight, (cooed at them from a voice that could only belong to Tanaka.)

“I’m getting the strangest feeling that the next time we all practice spikes, I might accidentally land one in Tanaka’s face,” Kei muttered quietly as the team’s chatter began to recede behind them. 

“Don’t be rude, Tsukki,” Tadashi chided, elbowing him softly in the side. 

“I just have a feeling that it might happen,” the blonde said casually. The brunette shook his head, sniffling quietly. They were quiet for most of the way home, Tadashi, who usually fueled the conversation, in no mood to talk at the moment. Kei noted how the shorter boy leaned more and more heavily against him as they walked, his eyes getting glassier with each step. Was he worried? A little. But not enough to stop him from leading Tadashi home and getting him inside. 

“Go lay on the couch,” Kei instructed after helping pull off Tadashi’s jacket and shoes. He pointed towards the living room. 

“Are you gonna join me?” Tadashi asked, looking over his shoulder at Kei as he moved to do as asked. 

“In a minute,” Kei answered. “I’m gonna go make tea, and then I’ll join you.” Tadashi nodded agreeably before disappearing into the living room. 

Kei continued into the kitchen, filling up the kettle and setting it on the stove before noticing a tray of cookies left out with a note attached. 

_Boys, I made these cookies for work, but made a few too extra by mistake, so these are yours. If one of you could slip them on a plate that would be great. Love you. – Mom_

Kei smiled softly to himself. His mom had a tendency to always make “a few too extra” cookies on the rare occasion that she baked for her coworkers. Not that he was complaining of course. He reached for a plate and spatula as well as two mugs, and went to work transferring the cookies as soon as he had the teabags steeping in the mugs. 

Kei had always enjoyed baking, and found himself rather absorbed in moving the cookies from pan to plate. So absorbed, in fact, that he didn’t hear footsteps sneaking up behind him. The blonde felt a shiver run down his spine as warm arms wrapped around his abdomen. He craned his neck back to see brown hair on the top of the head nuzzling itself against his shoulder blade. “What the hell are you doing?”

“You took too long,” Tadashi said as if that were a proper excuse. 

“I told you I was making tea, and would be with you in a minute,” Kei replied sharply, tempted to scrape Tadashi’s arms off of him with the spatula in his hand but thought better of it. 

“But it was so lonely in there without you,” Tadashi said, voice dangerously close to a whine. He unwound one arm from Kei’s abdomen as he curled away, coughing roughly into his sleeve. Tsukishima felt his own chest ache in sympathy. Tadashi’s head fell against his shoulder blade again, but his arm hung loosely at his side, as if he didn’t have the energy to wrap it around his boyfriend again. “And we’ve been waiting all night to be alone together.”

There was something about his tone of voice that didn’t sit well in Kei’s mind. The blonde’s eyes narrowed as an alarm started to sound in the back of his brain. He tried to ignore it by busying his hands with the cookies, moving them from the baking dish to a plate with the spatula. “Tadashi?”

The brunette nuzzled his head against Kei’s shoulder blade again. “Hm?”

“It’s not like you to be this impatient.”

“I know but I just…” He took a deep breath, “didn’t want to be away from you.”

“You’re awfully clingy tonight,”

“We just haven’t spent much time alone together in a while and I thought we should make the most of it.”

Without warning, Kei put the spatula down and pried Tadashi’s arm from his stomach so he could turn around to face the shorter boy, placing a hand against his forehead. Tadashi leaned into his touch, his face melting in relief at Kei’s cool skin.

“You’re hot,” the blonde observed. 

“No, you’re hot,” Tadashi muttered back, lips curling up into a devilish smile. Kei lightly pushed him away by the forehead. 

“Not what I meant,” he chided, turning back to the cookies. He only had two rows to go. 

“Well I meant it,” Tadashi shot back, almost purring. 

Kei paused mid-transfer, glaring backwards at the brunette over his shoulder. “Are you trying to flirt with me?”

“Depends.” Tadashi shrugged nonchalantly before looking up at Kei through his eyelashes. “Is it working?” 

“No. Go lay down on the couch.” 

Tadashi pouted his lips but did as Kei said, which the blonde was grateful for. He finished putting the cookies on a plate and grabbed the two mugs before finally moving into the living room. 

Tadashi looked up at him as he slid next to him on the couch. “Guess what today is,” the brunette said, accepting his mug with slightly shaking hands. 

“Hm?”

“Our first month anniversary.”

“Really?” Kei asked, taking a careful sip of his tea. Tadashi nodded, staring down at his own mug. “Is that why you were trying to seduce me in there?”

“Sort of,” Tadashi admitted, shrugging his shoulders. “I kinda forgot about it until just now.” Kei smiled, reaching for the remote to turn on something mindless on TV.

“Well happy anniversary then,” he said. 

“Happy anniversary,” Tadashi repeated. They fell into silence yet again, interrupted only by the brunette’s coughs and sniffles and the sounds of tea disappearing from their mugs. 

Kei started when he felt Tadashi slump against his shoulder. 

“Tadashi?” he exclaimed, setting his mug down on the end table before moving to pull Tadashi’s away from him too in case he had passed out. 

“Kiss me,” the brunette muttered, hitting Kei’s arm weakly. So he was conscious.

“What?” the blonde laughed. 

“Kiss me,” Tadashi repeated listlessly. “Come on, we’re alone! We’re supposed to be… supposed to do couple things…” His voice trailed off, as if speaking expended too much energy. 

“Are you serious?” Kei laughed. Tadashi turned his head just enough to level a glassy-eyed glare in the blonde’s direction. Kei shook his head, smiling softly at the adorable obstinacy on his boyfriend’s face. “You’re too gross right now.” 

Yamaguchi gave a whine at his words, burrowing deeper into Kei’s side as he lightly smacked his arm again. Kei only laughed again. “Not tonight,” he declared, gently pushing Tadashi’s hair away from his forehead. “We don’t have to be romantic tonight.”

“Really?”

Kei nodded. 

Tadashi’s face softened with relief, his whole body seeming to melt too. “Oh good.”

“Not when you’re sick,” Kei added, gently wrapping his arm around Tadashi so he could run his fingers through his hair. “And not just because you look disgusting right now; because you don’t feel well. We don’t have to do stupid romantic stuff cause we’re alone. We get to act _normal_ when we’re alone.” Tadashi hummed gratefully, letting his eyes slip closed. “Besides, you suck at the art of seduction.”

“Mean, Tsukki,” Tadashi chided, sniffling pathetically as he weakly slapped at the other boy’s abdomen this time, only his fingers grazing Kei’s shirt. 

Tsukishima chuckled softly. “I’m not taking it back. What I just saw in the kitchen was probably a three out of ten in attractiveness, a two out of ten in subtlety, and a four out of ten in overall seduction.”

“It still beats the time you compared my freckles to stars,” Tadashi argued obstinately.

“I beg to differ,” Kei said with a click of his tongue. “Mostly because I wasn’t sniffling my way through it.”

“Don’t make me kiss you,” Tadashi threatened, angling his face just enough so he could level a warning glare at the blonde. “Cause I’ll do it. And then we’ll see who’s laughing.” His voice cracked at the end of the sentence, spurring a fit of coughs that had the boy curling in on himself and away from Kei’s arms. The blonde frowned, even as Tadashi regained his breath and fell back against his chest, limp as a ragdoll.

“We should get you in bed.”

“Okay…” Yamaguchi pushed himself to his feet, slow enough that he didn’t fall, but Kei was ready to catch him if he did. And once he was steady on his feet, Tsukishima stood up and lightly grabbed his wrist. 

“Come on,” the blonde said, pulling him towards the stairs. 

Tadashi paused when they passed the front door. “Where are we going?” he asked, his forehead wrinkling confusedly as he stared back at the door. 

“My room.”

Tadashi put on the brakes, shaking his head. “Oh no, we can’t…”

“Why not?” Kei asked, stopping abruptly and searching glassy brown eyes for an answer. “You’ve slept in my room hundreds of times…”

“Not when we were dating…”

Kei snorted against his better judgment. “What did I just say about the romantic stuff?” 

“It’s stupid,” Tadashi parroted. 

“Well that, but I said we can act normal when we’re alone,” Kei said in response, giving the brunette’s wrist a gentle squeeze. “Which means you can sleep in my room and it’ll be no different from every other time you’ve slept in my room.” Yamaguchi nodded, but his face still looked troubled. Of course, that could’ve just been because he was sick and miserable. 

Kei led Tadashi the rest of the way up to his room and left him standing dazedly in the middle as he fished out a pair of pajamas. “Somehow, all of your clothes have ended up back at your house, so you’ll have to wear mine.” He gently wrapped Tadashi’s hands around the pajamas, instructing him to put them on before leaving to find some sort of medication. 

He was so absorbed in scanning the shelves of the medicine cabinet in the bathroom that he didn’t hear Akiteru walk up behind him. 

“What’re you doing?”

Kei hit his head against the cabinet door as he whirled around to address his brother. Akiteru was watching him curiously. 

“I’m looking through the cabinet. What does it look like I’m doing?” Kei snapped, wincing as he rubbed his head. 

“I don’t mean literally, dummy,” Akiteru replied with a generous roll of his eyes. “I mean why are you looking through the cabinet?”

“Yamaguchi’s sick. I’m looking for medicine,” Kei answered, as short as possible. 

“What’s going on?” Kei didn’t turn around to address his brother’s girlfriend as he continued to sift through the contents of the cabinet. 

“Kei’s just being a good boyfriend,” Akiteru explained. Kei spared him a sideways glare, noting that Saeko had already managed to wrap her arms around him like a sloth and had her head perched on his shoulder, watching him intently. She had a habit of doing that, he’d noticed: studying him like a cat observing a mouse. Tanaka did the same thing but was less intense about it. Kei found it frankly unsettling, and sincerely hoped Saeko did the same thing to his brother. 

“Is Yamaguchi here?” Saeko asked, peeking back at Kei’s room, where the door was still slightly ajar. 

“Yeah,” Kei answered, retreating victorious from the cabinet, bottle of cold medicine in hand. He noted how both of his spectator’s eyes moved from the bottle to his face. “What?”

“You’re really sweet to him.” Akiteru smiled, soft yet proud. It was something Kei wasn’t prepared for. 

“Okay,” he replied shortly. 

“I mean it, Kei,” the older boy said in earnest. “Where did you learn to be such a good boyfriend?”

Kei blinked again, answering without a second’s pause. “Saeko.”

He slipped out of the bathroom as his brother’s girlfriend gave a victorious cheer and Akiteru called “I hate you!” after him. Kei smiled to himself as he slipped back into his room and shut the door behind him. Tadashi was standing in the middle of the room, looking ridiculously uncomfortable. He’d changed into Kei’s pajamas, (which were _just_ too big for him,) but didn’t seem to have an idea of what to do next. 

He looked up at the sound of the door closing, fixing hazy brown eyes on the blonde. “Hello.”

“Hi,” Kei said, nearly whispering. “Why aren’t you in bed?” Tadashi shrugged. Kei shook his head, chuckling softly to himself as he moved towards the brunette. He took Tadashi by the shoulders and steered him towards his bed, pushing him towards it. Without protest, Tadashi crawled under the covers, and Kei helped pull them back over him. 

“Hey, sit up for a second so you can take this,” the blonde instructed gently, measuring out a cup full of the medicine. “I don’t know if it’s the right stuff or not, but it’s all we have. And something’s better than nothing, right?”

“Right,” Tadashi answered with a nod, sitting up and taking the medicine with no further complaint or argument. As soon as he was settled back under the covers, Kei set about setting up the extra futon on the floor. Yamaguchi was usually the one on the floor, but Kei figured he could make an exception when his boyfriend was so ill. He smiled to himself, realizing it was the first time he’d naturally thought of Tadashi as his boyfriend. Usually he had to correct himself. 

After he finished setting up his bed for the night, Kei got himself ready for bed, changing his clothes and brushing his teeth before settling down at his desk with a book. It was still relatively early in the evening, but he knew he wasn’t going anywhere anytime soon. 

“Tsukki?”

Kei didn’t turn around, but still gave Tadashi his full attention. “Yeah?”

“Are you gonna play volleyball forever?”

The blonde boy turned around at that, addressing the lump in his bed. Tadashi was watching him with a curious look on his face, his head slumped against the pillow as if he didn’t have the energy to hold it up but really needed to know the answer to this question. 

“I don’t know,” Kei answered with a shrug. 

“You should,” Tadashi insisted. 

Kei’s eyebrows furrowed. “Why?”

“Because you’re so good at it,” Tadashi said, emphasizing the ‘good.’ Kei cocked his head to the side. “You get all the blocks, and you read the people so well. You’re so good at it, and you love it so much.”

“Do I?” Kei asked amusedly, smiling at his clearly very delirious boyfriend’s praises. 

“Um-hm.” Tadashi nodded against his pillow. “You love it so much. I can see it in your face while you’re on the court, and in your eyes after a match, and in your muscles while you’re playing, and when you get upset when we lose or you don’t play your best. Cause you never play bad. You just think you do, but the rest of us know you’re great.” 

“You think I’m great?”

“I know you’re great. Cause you’re Tsukishima Kei, and you’re the coolest popsicle in the ice stand,” Tadashi replied with a certainty that could only be claimed by those who were either drunk or feverish. 

“Ice stand?”

“Yeah.”

“I don’t think that exists…”

“You know why else you should play volleyball forever?” Tadashi said as if Kei hadn’t even spoken. “You look so happy when you play.” Tsukishima didn’t reply, feeling as though his boyfriend wasn’t done talking. “Your eyes get all shiny. And you look so beautiful.”

Kei pressed his lips together, grateful that Tadashi was probably too out of it to see how red his face was as he quietly suggested: “How about you go to sleep now?”

“But I’m not tired.”

“You can’t even keep your eyes open.”

“Don’t tell me what to do.”

Kei shook his head, giving up on trying to argue with his incoherent boyfriend. “Goodnight, Yamaguchi.”

“Goodnight Tsukki. Love you.”

Kei paused at those two words, mumbled incoherently, yet so important. 

It was the first time either one had dared to use the “L” word. And if Tadashi was dropping it like it was nothing while sick and delirious, he’d probably been thinking it for a while. 

Kei let that knowledge sink in, turning back to his desk. He knew reading would be pointless at this point; his mind was working too fast to focus right now. He heard Tadashi shift on the bed behind him, listening until his breathing evened out. 

Of course he’d known he loved Tadashi. He’d known that for a while. They’d both even admitted it on the night they agreed to date; but they’d hadn’t said it like Tadashi had just now. Neither one had actually said ‘I love you,’ so it didn’t really count. 

But all particulars aside, Kei never even considered the possibility that his feelings for Tadashi would ever be more than friendship, or could ever be returned for that matter. Because Kei had never wanted a romantic relationship with Tadashi, or at least not the kind of romantic relationship they were pursuing now. He’s always just imagined them being together, an integral part of each other’s lives, forever. And he hadn’t wanted more than that.

But something had changed. While he hated having to use nicknames instead of calling Tadashi by just his name, Kei also loved the feeling of their hands intertwined as they walked to school. While he loathed having to schedule their hangouts and call them dates and force small talk, he sincerely enjoyed the jokes they’d made about their horrible flirting attempts. While he despised the feeling that they were being watched and judged by their peers, he really did love the feeling of kissing Tadashi. 

Something was definitely different. Where there had been a simple wish for a life spent in each other’s company, Kei now felt a desire to be with this boy in a way that went beyond just friendship. He truly wanted to be his boyfriend, and his whatever else came after that. And if that was love, then Tsukishima Kei was head over heels for Yamaguchi Tadashi. 

The more he thought about it, the clearer it became that it wasn’t a change in him per say, but a realization. A coming to. A comprehension of something that was always there, but waiting for the right time. 

Kei decided in the spur of the moment that this was the right time. Sure, his boyfriend was delirious and drugged up on cold medicine, but that could have been the best thing about this moment. If he messed up, he could try again tomorrow. And he’d probably look a lot cooler the second time around because he would actually know what to say. 

Still, he stood up from his chair and padded over to the bed, staring down at the brunette snoring softly in his bed. 

“Hey, Tadashi?”

No response. Kei nodded and slowly maneuvered himself into the bed, wrapping an arm around Tadashi and pulling him close. The brunette’s head fell against his shoulder. Kei smiled down at him, and in another spur of the moment decision, pulled out his phone and snapped a picture of the two of them. For later. 

“Tadashi?” Kei asked again, tucking his phone away on the nightstand. Yamaguchi still didn’t answer, sleeping soundly. Kei sighed, repositioning them so that they were laying on their backs. Tadashi shifted so that his back was to Kei. The blonde, in turn, propped himself up on his elbow so that he was facing his boyfriend anyway.

“I love you too, you know?” he said, soft and unsure. 

Nothing but quiet, tempered breathing in reply.

Kei swallowed. “It means a lot that you’ve stuck by me all this time. I know I’m kind of an awful person sometimes, and that I’m really hard to love. But you… you do. You love me. And I’m so thankful that you do.” 

He took a deep breath, his heart hammering in his chest as the words continued to fall from his lips. “And I feel like you’ve always loved me somehow. When we were kids, you’d sit by me everyday at lunch even when I told you to go away. You always made sure I wasn’t alone. You walk home with me every day. You always laugh with me when Hinata and Kageyama are being stupid. You text me pictures of dogs or things you think I’d like. You’re always there for me when I need you. Even when I don’t want you there, you’ll be there if I need it because you always just seem to know when I need someone to pull me down to Earth. You yell at me when I’m acting like an idiot. You always encourage me to do my best, and don’t let me settle for any less than that. You’re my biggest fan and my harshest critic. And in all of that, I just... I know that you love me.”

Kei buried his face into Tadashi’s shoulder blade, nervous from the rush of words. “I think about the future a lot. I know I don’t say it, but I do. And I want you to be with me in the future like you are now. I don’t know what that means exactly. But all I know is that I need you to be there. Because you love me. And you make me want to be a better person. Because you love me. And I love you.”

Tadashi shifted suddenly, and Kei let go briefly as the brunette twisted to face him, unconsciously snuggling closer to Kei, arms twining around him. The blonde smiled, wrapping his arms around the brunette. 

“I love you, Tsukki.”

Kei froze as a small smile accompanied the sleepily whispered words. Tadashi didn’t open his eyes. More sleep talking, then. 

Still, Kei felt his heart start to beat a little faster as he pressed his forehead gently against Tadashi’s and whispered: “I love you too.”

Kei’s heart rate shot up when Tadashi whispered “I know” in response. 

~

When Kei woke up the next morning, he was still in his bed, Tadashi snuggled up to his chest and clinging to him like a sleepy sloth. The extra futon he’d dragged into the room was cold and empty. Kei sighed, praying his immune system was strong enough to withstand sleeping with his sick boyfriend. But he couldn’t say he regretted it. 

The blonde slowly eased out of Tadashi’s iron grip, making sure that the brunette was still warm and comfortable as he slept. When he got to his feet, Kei stretched his arms above his head, his back giving a satisfied crack. As he crept out of the room and down the stairs, he rolled his shoulders, wincing at how sore they were. He and Tadashi were going to have to work out a better position if they planned to sleep snuggled up like that again. 

Kei paused at that thought, smiling before his mind could catch up. 

He walked all the way down the stairs into the kitchen. Kei pulled out one of the chairs at the table and sat down, pulling out his phone. He may have momentarily forgotten that their first month anniversary was yesterday, but he’d devised a plan to make up for it. And he’d only just clicked ‘share’ when he heard footsteps padding down the stairs. He kept his eyes on his phone as the person rounded into the kitchen. 

“Hey.”

Kei looked up as Tadashi moved slowly into the room and sat down at the table. “Hey. How’re you feeling?” he greeted, giving the brunette his full attention. 

Tadashi’s face wrinkled in a pitiful pout. “Icky.” The word was followed by a rough cough and a small whimper as he rubbed his throat. 

“You sound gross,” Kei said in response. “You look kinda gross too.” It wasn’t a complete lie. Yamaguchi’s skin was unnaturally pale save for a reddened nose and a feverish flush in his cheeks, his freckles standing out as if they were drawn on in maker. His hair was rumpled from sleep and sweat, and his eyes were still rather glassy. But Tadashi could never really look anything but adorable to Kei, so telling him he looked gross was hardly an insult.

“Gee thanks,” Tadashi replied, rolling his eyes overdramatically. The blonde boy shook his head. “Hey Kei?”

“Yeah?”

“I’ve been thinking. About us, and what you said last night. And I… this whole dating thing… it just feels weird,” Tadashi admitted, looking down at his hands. “Hanging out with you isn’t fun when I’m constantly thinking about what we’re supposed to be doing now that we’re ‘a couple.’ It just feels wrong and unnatural, and it shouldn’t be that way.”

He paused, stifling a cough in his sleeve and sniffling before continuing. “I think we need to just act normal around each other, you know? Forget all the nicknames and forced compliments. It’s all just pretend anyway, like we’re trying to prove that we’re together. Who really cares? We don’t need to prove anything to anybody. I already I know that you love me. You don’t need to tell me I’m pretty or take me out places for me to know that. It’s in everything you do when we’re together.” He paused, staring at Kei, asking for an answer with his eyes. 

And while Kei knew exactly what he wanted to say, his wit beat him to it. “Are… are you breaking up with me?”

“No! Never. I just… I don’t want to mess this up by forcing it,” Tadashi sighed, his eyes almost pleading, missing the sarcastic lilt in Kei’s voice. “Because I really do want to be with you, Kei, but what we’re doing now is just so uncomfortable and I’m scared we’ll grow apart if we let it continue…”

“So you’re proposing that we keep dating but stop ‘dating?’” Kei clarified, phrasing it as a question. 

Tadashi nodded. “You said it pretty nicely yesterday. I don’t care if we’re dating, as long as we’re together. We can be together, but stop all the cheesy romantic stuff. Let the romantic part happen on its own over time instead of force it now.” He smiled, soft and sweet and so purely Tadashi. “We can act normal all the time, not just when we’re alone.”

A smile broke on Kei’s lips before he could stop it. Yamaguchi had a way of making that happen. “I could kiss you right now,” the blonde said, his grin taking on a sarcastic bend. “But you’re probably contagious, and you just broke up with me, so that’s not happening.”

“I didn’t break up with you!” Tadashi shot back, laughing softly. “And you know, I doubt that a kiss on the cheek would contaminate you more than sleeping in your bed with me last night did.”

Kei narrowed his eyes at the brunette challengingly. Before Tadashi could make any other argument, he surprised him by blowing him a kiss. “I’ll kiss you properly when you’re healthy.” He rose to his feet and moved into the kitchen as he heard Tadashi give a noise of protest. “Incentive to get better fast,” he called over his shoulder. 

“Not nice. Tsukki is not nice,” he heard the brunette muttered darkly before coughing hoarsely. 

“Also, you should check your Instagram,” Kei said casually, filling the kettle with water before setting it on the stove, making sure his back was to Tadashi as much as possible to conceal the smile he couldn’t keep off his face. 

The brunette hummed curiously, pulling his phone from the pocket of Kei’s pajama pants, and opened the app in question. He noticed a notification that he’d been tagged in a photo. Forehead wrinkling, Tadashi clicked opened said photo.

It was picture of him and Kei from last night. Tadashi was fast asleep, leaning against Kei’s side, head perched on his shoulder. Kei, for his part, had his head resting on top of Tadashi’s, a soft smile on his lips as he took the picture. 

The caption read: No better way to spend a first month anniversary, and no one better to spend it with. #HappyAnniversary #AdventuresWithTsukkiAnd Yams #He’sPrettyHot #ButThatCouldJustBeTheFever #ScientistsAreStillOutOnIt.

Tadashi felt his eyes start to sting. “You used my caption,” he said quietly, almost to himself. But Kei smiled harder when he heard it, busying his hands by pulling out two mugs, both of which Tadashi had given him over the years. One was yellow with a green brachiosaurus and the other was blue with a red stegosaurus. They were Kei’s favorite mugs. 

He was saved from making any sort of lovey-dovey, cheesy response as they heard footfalls on the stairs and Saeko turned around the corner into the kitchen, smiling brightly at both boys. 

“Good morning,” she greeted. “You’re both up early.”

“I’m always up by now,” Kei replied, pouring water into the mugs and adding teabags to both. Saeko shook her head at him, used to him by now, before switching her attention to the brunette at the table. 

“Hey kid. How’re you feeling?” she asked, gliding over to Tadashi’s chair and smoothly placing her hand against his forehead. “You feel pretty hot.”

“He looks pretty hot too,” Kei murmured under his breath. Tadashi laughed quietly and Saeko smiled. 

“I heard Kei here took pretty good care of you last night,” the young woman said, moving into the kitchen where Kei was currently preparing the tea. 

“He did,” Tadashi nodded, smiling up at the taller boy as he slid the steaming stegosaurus mug in front of him. “Cause Tsukki’s the best boyfriend.”

“Shut up, Yamaguchi,” Kei muttered, winking covertly at the brunette. 

Tadashi hid his smile behind his mug. “Sorry Tsukki.”

Saeko glanced back and forth between the two boys, smiling conspiratorially into their respective mugs, and shrugged as she turned back to the coffeemaker. All couples had their things, she supposed, words that meant nothing to anyone else but them. 

And if Kei and Tadashi had finally found their rhythm, who was she to judge?

**Author's Note:**

> In the end, Kei never did get sick, but visited Yamaguchi everyday while he was out, bringing him his homework and texting him funny pictures and videos of dogs to make him laugh. They went back to acting normal around each other, dropping the pet names and only cuddling when it felt natural, which they found was more often than not. The team stopped pestering them about their relationship, and they were able to find their new normal.  
> Also, Hinata and Kageyama didn't get together until halfway through their second year. Their list was five pages long by then. 
> 
> Thank you so much for reading! I really hope that this was enjoyable and not a chore to get through. Comments are always appreciated, especially if you have any critiques or criticisms, but you know, positive things are always welcome. 
> 
> Thanks for reading, and have a wonderful day!


End file.
